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BIG STORY OF THE FORTNIGHT
Political supremacy of Hinduism?
Sabyasachi Chakravarty Oakville | Canada
Guest Columnist
May 18, 2014
Here’s a very relevant story from the pages of Indian history we must reminisce at this hour: In and around the 14th century, during the Mughal era, there was a short and glorious aberration, Hemchandra, or Hemu, an accountant-turned-General of the Mughal army, who had usurped power in Delhi. He began his march from Dwarbangla, or present day Darbanga in the state of Bihar in India, and won 22 consecutive battles with various Islamic forces along the way. He reached Delhi and proclaimed himself Raja (King). He reestablished the old Hindu rule and promised to end Islam in India.
While on that march to Delhi, he passed Kashi, now Varanasi, where he prayed at the Kashi Vishvanath temple and did ‘aarti’ (Hindu prayer) on the banks of the river Ganges. Thousands thronged to see him and the masses were ecstatic.
Six to seven hundred years later we witnessed another such wave, another prayer, at the Samar historic temple and the same ‘aarti’ at the ‘ghats’ (banks of the holy Ganges river). A stark reminder of the march to Delhi by another Hindu king elevated to the level of a demigod.
Though, if you talk about civilization, Hinduism has been rich and culturally diverse. What it has lacked for more than a thousand years is political and military supremacy. Modi’s appeal seems to make us all believe that he can bring back the glorious past: the lure of a powerful and strong India.
Nobody has yet thought about the challenges, nor has Modi himself, but does he really need to? Masses can stay drunk on illusions of glory, society can be galvanized on a single element of thought , disparate Hindus can come together as one, there can one God we bow down to and one book to believe. These concepts are not new; they are the tenets of Islam.
So my question is, are we headed for an India which is muscular, aggressive, intolerant yet highly successful and powerful?
I’m afraid there is no other choice now.
Write to Sabyasachi at samchak67@gmail.com
Are we headed for an India which is muscular, aggressive, intolerant yet highly successful and powerful?
Narendra Modi performing 'aarti' (Hindu prayer) at the banks of the holy Ganges in Varanasi on Saturday, May 17, 2014, after his party, Bharatiya Janata Party won a landslide victory. Modi is all set to be Prime Minister of India. (Background) Modi on his victory lap in Varanasi on the same day.
Mars explorers will not
be coming back!
The nonprofit organization Mars One has made its first round of cuts for applicants hoping to be the first humans to set foot on the surface of Mars. Mars One aims to send a group of four astronauts to Mars in 2024, with no plans for a return to Earth. Despite the prospect of permanently leaving everything and everyone they know behind, 200,000 people originally signed up for the project. Now, only 705 candidates remain.
With the number of applicants vying for an opportunity to take part in a one-way mission to Mars now down to just over 700, organizers of the Mars One project are now focusing on selecting the perfect mix of individuals who have the physical and mental capacity to live on the red planet.
Mars One estimates the cost of the mission at $6 billion, a heady amount for any nonprofit to come up with.
The organization is looking at a number of funding sources for the mission, including reality TV deals. CEO Bas Lansdorp is hoping to attract sponsors with the opportunity to broadcast the daily lives of the first humans to live on another world.
Lansdorp claims the technology necessary to transport a crew to Mars already exists. However, current technologies necessary to sustain life on Mars have never been tested on the planet, and Mars One will have to spend a lot of time and effort proving that a habitable and safe living space can be created in the harsh environment of the Martian surface.
Many candidates are faced with the prospect of leaving their spouses and children behind on Earth. candidate Leila Zucker’s husband said he doesn’t want her to go, but supports her following her dreams regardless. Another candidate, Dan Carey, said that his wife does not approve of his desire to be on the mission. “She’s concerned that she’s going to have to watch me die on television,” said Carey.
Despite the potential hardships of leaving Earth forever, most of the remaining candidates are steadfast in their determination to be a part of the historic undertaking.
“Usually, every time I tell somebody about the trip, they say it’s a ‘suicide mission’ and ‘you’re going to die on Mars,’” said candidate Brian Robles. “Well, we’re going to die here, too. So might as well live your whole life to the fullest.”
Source: Various
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War declared on Boko Haram
The United States joined five West African nations, France and the United Kingdom on Saturday to coordinate a multi-state crackdown on Boko Haram, the extremist Islamist group that abducted more than 200 schoolgirls in Nigeria last month.
At a meeting in Paris organized by French President François Hollande, heads of state of Cameroon, Niger, Chad, Benin and Nigeria met to discuss a medium- to long-term plan on sharing surveillance information, intelligence and military resources, the New York Times reports. U.S. and E.U. representatives also attended.
The summit was requested by President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria. “Without West African countries coming together, we will not be able to crush these terrorists,” Jonathan said.
Cameroonian President Paul Biya said: “We are here to declare war on Boko Haram,” according to the BBC, while President Idriss Deby of Chad said it would be “total war”.
Until Saturday’s meeting, there had been little cooperation between the West African nations, and their borders are porous to insurgents moving from one country to another.
Boko Haram most recently attacked a camp run by a Chinese engineering company in north Cameroon Friday, near Nigeria’s border, the BBC reports, where ten Chinese were abducted.
Boko Haram kidnapped over 200 schoolgirls on April 14, spurring an international outcry against the extremist Islamist group. The U.S. has pledged to assist with reconnaissance and intelligence but stopped short of offering military support.
Sources: Various
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